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Homelessness: Greater London

Volume 464: debated on Monday 8 October 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what percentage of people were (a) homeless and (b) on the council housing waiting list in each London borough in each of the last 10 years. (154806)

The first table shows (i) the number of households accepted as owed the main homelessness duty, and (ii) this number as a percentage of total households in the area, for each London borough for the last 10 financial years (from 1997-98 to 2006-07).

Information on numbers of households, rather than people, is reported each quarter by local authorities about their activities under homelessness legislation, and includes the number of households accepted by local authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty. The duty owed to an accepted household is to secure suitable accommodation.

The second table shows (i) the total number of households on local authorities’ housing waiting lists (i.e. not just those that are homeless), and (ii) this number as a percentage of total households in the area, for each London borough for the last 10 calendar years (from 1997 to 2006).

Local authorities in England report the numbers of households on their housing waiting list as at 1 April in their annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix returns. Not everyone on the waiting list is necessarily in urgent housing need. The waiting list includes those who consider social housing as their preferred or one of a number of housing options, and those who decide to get onto the waiting list ladder before they need or want to move house—particularly where the priority system is heavily based on waiting time. Note that the figures include all households on the waiting list, and not only those that are homeless.

Table (a): Number and percentage of households accepted as owed the main homelessness duty in each London borough

(i) Number of households accepted1 as owed a main homelessness duty during the year, 1997-98 to 2006-07

1997-98

1998-99

1999-2000

2000-01

2001-02

2002-03

2003-04

2004-05

2005-06

2006-07

Barking and Dagenham

65

257

230

234

346

595

667

775

345

1

Barnet

872

1,027

1,103

1,159

1,112

2

1,084

758

2—

471

Bexley

285

319

275

359

454

468

365

430

270

251

Brent

1,164

2—

1,040

1,146

1,236

1,039

897

795

813

738

Bromley

610

728

839

881

785

865

873

2—

718

621

Camden

1,422

1,555

1,338

1,021

1,120

1,290

1,648

1,148

697

322

City of London

44

53

64

17

12

31

22

31

19

12

Croydon

2—

814

1,219

1,886

1,198

1,291

1,240

1,126

581

340

Ealing

1,068

1,016

989

1,026

860

1,001

1,094

789

662

442

Enfield

743

754

793

1,007

1,143

1,186

1,085

2—

852

768

Greenwich

1,270

1,403

1,242

1,227

1,217

1,003

1,246

1,157

970

610

Hackney

676

705

963

2—

2—

1,136

2—

1,153

2—

774

Hammersmith and Fulham

598

709

895

918

805

811

644

653

430

443

Haringey

1,157

975

2—

1,436

1,138

2—

2—

1,175

1,128

585

Harrow

690

720

670

701

444

400

264

96

120

159

Havering

283

2—

2—

2—

2—

180

452

200

2—

264

Hillingdon

932

914

686

1,003

1,119

933

735

461

396

311

Hounslow

858

2—

1,003

945

1,383

852

691

891

674

466

Islington

949

2—

1,298

1,556

1,428

1,314

2—

1,130

2—

686

Kensington and Chelsea

594

2—

533

658

593

410

476

589

299

269

Kingston upon Thames

437

2—

306

421

2—

448

418

2—

2—

230

Lambeth

779

1,039

1,124

1,110

1,470

1,651

1,545

1,644

1,277

735

Lewisham

2—

1,085

1,248

2—

1,102

1,170

1,502

1,245

1,097

744

Merton

186

205

242

168

173

156

204

261

215

107

Newham

2—

1,383

1,411

1,596

1,449

1,433

1,519

2—

1,422

428

Redbridge

322

302

450

2—

437

2—

806

2—

599

410

Richmond upon Thames

584

633

432

343

399

325

316

279

254

152

Southwark

890

1,204

1,614

1,702

1,317

1,827

1,540

1,668

1,039

723

Sutton

274

299

513

429

462

429

312

272

219

215

Tower Hamlets

971

1,070

1,130

1,282

1,401

1,617

1,657

1,151

789

864

Waltham Forest

880

2—

856

1,024

1,121

1,140

1,025

800

769

696

Wandsworth

440

2—

2—

886

927

1,072

1,036

840

680

589

Westminster

1,266

1,152

1,074

1,176

1,132

1,117

1,112

970

662

(ii)- Percentage of households accepted1 as owed a main homelessness duty during the year, out of total number of households in each Borough, 1997-98 to 2006-07

Percentage

1997-98

1998-99

1999-00

2000-01

2001-02

2002-03

2003-04

2004-05

2005-06

2006-07

Barking and Dagenham

0.1

0.4

0.4

0.4

0.5

0.9

1 0

1 2

0.5

2—

Barnet

0.7

0.9

0.9

0.9

0.9

2—

0.8

0.6

2—

0.4

Bexley

0.3

0.4

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.5

0.4

0.5

0.3

0.3

Brent

1.3

2—

1.1

1.2

1.2

1.0

0.9

0.8

0.8

0.7

Bromley

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.7

0.6

0.7

0.7

2—

0.6

0.5

Camden

1.7

1.9

1.6

1.2

1.2

1.4

1.7

1.2

0.7

0.3

City of London

1.4

1.5

1.7

0.4

0.3

0.7

0.5

0.6

0.4

0.2

Croydon

2—

0.6

0.9

1 .4

0.9

0.9

0.9

0.8

0.4

0.2

Ealing

1.0

0.9

0.9

0.9

0.7

0.8

0.9

0.7

0.6

0.4

Enfield

0.7

0.7

0.7

0.9

1.0

1.1

1.0

2—

0.8

0.7

Greenwich

1.5

1.6

1.4

1.4

1.3

1.1

1.3

1.2

1.0

0.6

Hackney

0.9

0.9

1.2

2—

2—

1.3

2—

1.3

2—

0.9

Hammersmith and Fulham

0.9

1.0

1.3

1.3

1.1

1.1

0.8

0.8

0.5

0.6

Haringey

1.3

1.1

2—

1.6

1.2

2—

2—

1.2

1.2

0.6

Harrow

0.9

0.9

0.9

0.9

0.6

0.5

0.3

0.1

0.1

0.2

Havering

0.3

2—

2—

2—

2—

0.2

0.5

0.2

2—

0.3

Hillingdon

1.0

1.0

0.7

1.0

1.2

1.0

0.7

0.5

0.4

0.3

Hounslow

1.1

2—

1.2

1.2

1.6

1.0

0.8

1.1

0.8

0.6

Islington

1.2

2—

1.7

2.0

1.7

1.6

2—

1.4

2—

0.8

Kensington and Chelsea

0.9

2—

0.8

0.9

0.7

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.3

0.3

Kingston upon Thames

0.8

2—

0.5

0.7

2—

0.7

0.7

2—

2—

0.4

Lambeth

0.7

0.9

1.0

1.0

1.2

1.4

1.3

1.4

1.1

0.6

Lewisham

2—

1.1

1.2

2—

1.0

1.1

1.4

1.2

1.0

0.7

Merton

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.1

Newham

2—

1.7

1.6

1.8

1.6

1.5

1.6

2—

1.5

0.5

Redbridge

0.4

0.3

0.5

2—

0.5

2—

0.9

2—

0.6

0.4

Richmond upon Thames

0.8

0.9

0.6

0.5

0.5

0.4

0.4

0.3

0.3

0.2

Southwark

0.9

1.2

1.6

1.7

1.2

1.7

1.4

1.5

0.9

0.7

Sutton

0.4

0.4

0.7

0.6

0.6

0.6

0.4

0.4

0.3

0.3

Tower Hamlets

1.4

1.5

1.6

1.7

1 .8

2.0

2.0

1.4

0.9

1 .0

Waltham Forest

1.0

2

1.0

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.1

0.9

0.8

0.8

Wandsworth

0.4

2

2

0.8

0.8

0.9

0.9

0.7

0.6

0.5

Westminster

2

1.5

1.4

1.2

1.2

1.1

1.0

1.0

0.9

0.6

1 Households eligible under homelessness legislation, found to be unintentionally homeless and in a priority need category, and consequently owed a main homelessness duty.

2 Denotes data not reported

Note:

Mid-year estimates. 2005-06 and 2006-07 figures based on latest mid-year estimate (2004)

Source:

CLG P1E Homelessness returns (quarterly)